A political ad airing in Florida has brought renewed attention to Senator Ashley Moody’s record on the Jeffrey Epstein case as she faces a tough reelection battle next week. The advertisement, featuring Marina Lacerda, an Epstein survivor, accuses Moody, a Republican, of prioritizing her political career over the interests of abused children by opposing measures to compel the Justice Department to release all files related to Epstein’s crimes.
Lacerda, who says she was abused by Epstein at age 13, challenges Moody directly, stating, “Ashley Moody, whose side are you on?” The ad is part of a broader national trend this midterm season in which Epstein’s legacy has become a focal point, with more than 60 congressional races featuring advertisements related to Epstein, according to media tracking data. These ads have collectively spent $76 million to date, often scrutinizing candidates’ stances on the release of government files connected to Epstein’s abuse and their ties to his network.
Moody, who represents Florida—where Epstein ran a sex trafficking operation centered on his Palm Beach estate—has largely avoided the sustained political fallout experienced by others linked to the case, including former President Donald Trump. Moody has maintained a low profile on the issue since her appointment to the Senate in January 2025 by Governor Ron DeSantis, granting few interviews beyond conservative media outlets.
Critics, including advocacy groups for sexual misconduct survivors, have pointed to Moody’s cautious approach as a means of evading scrutiny. In September 2025, Moody joined 50 other Republican senators in blocking an attempt to bring a vote on a bill proposed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer that aimed to force the release of Epstein-related documents. However, the Senate ultimately approved the measure by unanimous consent in November 2025, following a near-unanimous House vote, sending the bill to the president for signature.
The Florida ad’s claim that Moody “cast the deciding vote” to block the release of files is inaccurate; no formal roll-call vote took place. The ad also omits the Senate’s later unanimous approval of the release. Moody’s campaign and Republican Senate allies have condemned the advertisement as misleading. Joanna Rodriguez, a spokesperson for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, called it “disgusting lies” that misuse survivors as political tools. Meanwhile, a super PAC funded by Steve Pajcic, a former Democratic legislator, has spent $2 million supporting the ad and defends its portrayal by arguing Moody “voted against the young girls who were sexually abused.”
Moody’s office maintains that she supported passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act but has not clarified her early opposition or engagement with Epstein’s survivors. Her statement emphasized her record of supporting sexual assault survivors.
Before joining the Senate, Moody served as Florida’s attorney general during the 2019 initiation of an investigation into Epstein’s controversial 2008 plea deal, which allowed him to serve only 13 months in jail under a work-release program, despite serious allegations of sexual abuse. The agreement was widely criticized as overly lenient. Following the federal indictment of Epstein in 2019, Governor DeSantis ordered a probe into the earlier case, and Moody expressed support for the inquiry. However, the subsequent investigation cleared local law enforcement of wrongdoing.
Democratic Representative Kathy Castor criticized Moody’s limited engagement with the Epstein case, calling it “very strange” given Moody’s prior focus on combating human trafficking. Castor highlighted that survivors deserve bipartisan support and greater attention.
In a related event in Tampa, Castor joined Epstein survivors and activists to promote public awareness of the Epstein files. They unveiled the “Donald J. Trump and Jeffrey Epstein Memorial Bookmobile,” a mobile exhibit containing thousands of pages of released government documents referring to Epstein’s associates, including Trump, who has denied any involvement in Epstein’s crimes.
The bookmobile, supported by nonprofit groups Institute for Primary Facts and DEFIANCE.org, has toured multiple cities and will spend the final days before the election in Florida, where the Epstein investigation originated nearly two decades ago. Survivors featured in the campaign and events emphasize their reality and call attention to the ongoing demand for accountability.